fairfieli



G. W. FAIRFIVELD.

Car Seat and Couch.

No. 22-283.. Patented Dec. 14,1858.

Witnesses:

Inventor:

AN: PHDTQ-LITHO. CO. N.Y. (USB'JRNE'S PROCESS.)

UNITED STATES G. Y. FAIRFIELD, OF HOLYOKE, MASSACHUSETTS.

CAR SEAT Specificationof Letters Patent No T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, G. lV. FAIRFIELD, of Holyoke, in the county ofHampden and State of Massachusetts, have, invented a new and usefulImproved Car Seat and Couch; and I do hereby declare that the followingis a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being hadto the annexed drawings, making a part of this specifica tion, in whichFigure 1, represents a longitudinal vertical section of a portion of arailroad car, through the central passage way, showing a side view ofthe seats arranged for persons in a sitting position. Fig. 2, is asimilar section through the seats, representing the same arranged assleeping couches. Fig. 3, is a transverse vertical section of a portionof a railroad car, showing a front view of one of the seats.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the threefigures.

This invention consists in constructing the backs of the seats of aseries of slats which are placed parallel to each other in a horizontaldirection longitudinally across the backs, being attached to the clothwhich covers the same, so that the backs slide easily up and down incurved grooves of such a shape that when the seats are arranged forpersons in a sitting position, the backs may be brought to face eitherway, and that the same may be arranged in a horizontal position, inwhich they are supported on one side by a groove in one of the beamswhich extends in a longitudinal direction from one end of the car to theother, and on the other side by a similar groove in a corresponding beamwhich slides up and down in suitable guides at the outside of the seatsso that it may be brought to the suitable height when the seats are tobe arranged for sleeping couches while it is pushed up and fastenedclose under the roof of the car when not needed; and at the same timethe seats are so constructed that they may be unfolded so as to provideample sleeping room for the same number of passengers which the seatsare able to accommodate in a sitting position.

To enable others skilled in the art to fully understand and construct myimproved car seat, I will proceed to describe the same.

The seats, A, consist of two parts A, and A, which are formed each oftwo cushions a, a, and 64, a which are placed one AND COUCH.

. 22,283, dated December 14:, 1858.

on the top of the other and which are united by hinges so that the partsa, or a, unfold to a position represented in Fig. 2, or that the wholeof the part A, may be raised so that a person may enter and leave theseat equally well from both sides. The I parts a, are rigidly attachedto the side of the car and they are supported on one side 1 by aprojection a, and on the other by additional legs Z), and the parts A,rest on horizontal supports B, which are attached to standards C, at theoutside of the seats. These standards divide into two branches 0, c,which unite at the upper part and they are connected to the roof of thecar by rods D. The supports B, are fastened between the two branches 0,and c, of the standards: and the parts A, of the seats, when arrangedfor persons in a sitting position, rest on two subsequent supports. Itwill be no ticed that it would be difficult for persons to enter theseat if the parts A, could not be raised, as represented in Fig. 8, inred outlines.

The backs E, of the seats are constructed of a series of slats c, whichare covered over by cloth to which they are attached in a horizontaldirection, so as to render them perfectly flexible in this direction,and they are supported by grooves F, in the side of the car and bycorresponding grooves cl, at the inside of the standards C. The lowerparts of the grooves F, consist of two branches f, and f, whichcorrespond to the two branches 0, and c, of the standards C, and whichunite at the upper part and connect with a horizontal groove g, whichextends in the side of the car from one end of the same to the other.

The backs being perfectly flexible accommodate themselves to the shapeof the grooves F, and they may be pushed up in these grooves and broughtto a horizontal position in the grooves g, as represented in Fig. 2. Inorder to obtain a support for the backs at the outside when brought intothis position, a beam G, is made to slide up and down on the rods D, andit is provided with set screws 71, h, in order to fasten the same closeunder the roof of the car when it is not required. This beam is providedwith a longitudinal groovei, corresponding to the groove g, in the sideof the car, and when the same is lowered down to the top of thestandards 0, and when it is fastened in this position on the rods D, bymeans of the set screws h, the groove 2', runs parallel and at the sameheight with the groove 9, and it connects with the grooves 03, at theinside of the standards C, so that the backs E, when pushed up, enterthe grooves g, on one side and the grooves 2', on the other.

In order to arrange the seats for sleeping couches, the beam G, islowered down and the backs of two subsequent seats are pushed :up sideby side in the grooves-g, and 2', as represented in Fig. 2, and at thesame time both parts A, and A, of the seat are unfolded, the parts a anda, being turned down so as to form a continuous plane with the parts a,and a, and they are supported in this position on one side by theprojection a, and on the other by the support B, and the width of theseats and their distance from each other are such, that by thusunfolding the parts a, and a*, acontinuous plane is formed sufficientlylong for a person to lie down upon it, and wide enough to provide roomfor two persons side by side, while two other persons find room to liedown on the upper tier formed by the backs, so that the same number ofpassengers may be accommodated with sleeping room which the car is ableto accommodate in a sitting position.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is,

The combination of the flexible backs, with the curved grooves F, and(I, and the sliding beam G, so that the backs may be brought into ahorizontal position, substantially as specified.

G. lV. FAIRFIELD.

lVitnesses:

CHARLES F. QUiNT, LESTER l EwELL.

